


Who Needs Normal Anyway?

by tonysleatherjacket



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-15
Updated: 2018-06-13
Packaged: 2019-05-21 18:10:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14920346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tonysleatherjacket/pseuds/tonysleatherjacket
Summary: Zach longs for a sense of normalcy to his life, but he doubts things will ever be normal again. Maybe that's okay though. Picks up right after season 2 ends. Slightly slow Zalex burn.





	Who Needs Normal Anyway?

I was an idiot to think that things were finally settling down to a somewhat sense of normal. I mean, lately they had been. With the trial over, Bryce transferring, the school year coming to an end; it was like finishing the last chapter of the world's most shitty book. My days were spent falling asleep in the middle of class because I had been up so late the night before, either playing video games or talking to Alex. I dragged my little sister to every aquarium in town so I could impress her with all the random facts I knew about marine animals because she was the only person who didn't find it insanely boring. I was reveling in trying to be a normal teenager; a feeling I'd long since forgotten. But good things always seemed to have a way of exploding right in my face. 

It was the night of the dance, that _awful_ night, where my head seemed to catch up with reality. Because I wasn't a normal teenager. Not anymore. My life had been broken up into two parts; _before_ and _after_ Hannah. Before, things were easier. All I had to worry about were simple things, like my grades, sports, and the proverbial sense of loneliness I always seemed to feel. Because the thing was, I had the ideal teenage life of a popular athlete. But I always carried around a heaviness inside of me that I could never quite figure out how to deal with. My friends always seemed like everything was so easy for them. Everyone knew their place, and it was like they never had to worry about things like whether or not people liked them or if they were truly enjoying life or not.

When I was with Hannah, I was able to breathe a little easier. Feel a little less alone. But it was the after that ruined me. My life was in scrambles after her. It just wasn't enough to deal with the pain of losing her, all alone as I tried to pretend it didn't affect me. Because after all, we hadn't really known each other. I was just some guy that sat with her in a diner on Valentines Day as she cried after my creep of a friend assaulted her. I was just some entitled jock who thought I could flirt with her the  _day after_ and that'd she fall to my knees. She was just some girl who yelled at me in a crowded cafeteria. I was crying myself to sleep at night, trying not to think of all the intimate ways I had known her, and how I couldn't even talk about it to anyone. No, that wasn't enough. Then the tapes were passed down to me, and I had felt broken in a way I'd never experienced before. I knew what it was like to be lonely, but this was worse. It split me open. Left me with a hollowness I was scared would never be filled. 

The night Tyler made that awful decision, everything became so much worse. And yeah, I was the one that fucking called the cops after Clay told us not to, because in what possible situation where someone is planning to open fire on a school dance would you _not_ call the cops? Everything that happened after that was kind of a blur. There were police officers and a freaking SWAT team that came bursting through the doors of Liberty High. Once they'd done a thorough sweep throughout the gym and the rest of the school, they found Tyler's car parked out front, trunk full of weapons, but no sign of Tyler. Parents were notified of the situation, and the school turned into a total frenzy as some kids starting driving home and some parents drove to the school to get their children.  

I walk slowly with the crowd of people flooding out of the building, and there's a slight chill in the air, which is a bit weird since it is late in April after all. I rub my arms, glancing all around me, but finding no one I know. I'd lost sight of my friends in all the chaos. I decide to walk towards the back of the school, away from the giant mass of people. There were tons of people leaving, but also tons of people standing around, crying into their parent's or friend's arms. I pull my phone out to see about a dozen notifications; various texts and missed calls from both my mom and May. I press the call button on my mom's contact, and put the phone to my ear as I walk farther away from the large crowd.

"Zach?" My mom answers on the second ring, her voice full of worry. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, mom, I'm okay." I run a hand through my hair, messing up the gel in it. "It was...it was Tyler. They found his car in the parking lot filled with tons of weapons. They've got out all kinds of warnings about him, and are trying to find him."

"I'm so glad you're okay." She exclaims, and I can almost imagine the tears in her eyes. My mother rarely gets emotional like this. "If something had happened to you..."

"I know, mom. I know."

"Please come home as soon as you can."

"Alright. It's kind of crazy here right now, it'll take forever just to get out of the parking lot. I'm going to wait until some more people clear out before heading home."

"Please be careful. I'll see you soon. Text me when you're on your way. I love you."

"Love you."

When I hang up, I notice I've walked all the way to the baseball field. I stop, leaves crunching beneath my feet. I haven't been out here since I quit the team, and there's a longing burning through my chest. I miss the rush of the game. I can still hear the short tune of the coach's whistle. I'm about to head back to the front of the school when I see a hazy figure in the bleachers. I squint, trying to see through the darkness. I see the outline of a cane next to a body.  _Alex._ I was worried about him when we lost sight of each other not too long after the cops showed up. I turn on the flashlight on my phone, and head over to the bleachers. 

He looks up at me when I start climbing the steps, blinking as I accidentally shine the light in his eyes. "How'd you know I was out here?"

"I didn't." I say, and take a seat next to him. "I was just trying to get away from everyone."

"Oh. Me too." He looks out at the field, and I notice his bad hand shaking slightly. 

"Is your dad here?" I ask. 

"He was. I saw him for a minute, but then he got a call that he was being sent out to drive around looking for Tyler. He tried to give me a ride home, but I told him I would ask my mom to come get me."

"Is she on her way?"

He shrugs. "I haven't called her back yet. I just needed some time to myself for a minute, I guess."

I shift awkwardly on the cold metal bench. "Do you want me to leave?"

"No." He answers quickly. He turns to look back at me but doesn't say anything more. I shift my phone on my lap and lower the brightness of the flashlight. 

"I can't believe that just happened. How the  _fuck_ does someone just get their hands on automated weapons like that? Especially a fucking minor."

"I had a gun." Alex says it in a whispered kind of tone, and I glance over at him. He has a quiet, emotional look about him. It takes everything in me to look away. I get the feeling he doesn't want to be seen in such a vulnerable way. 

"But that's different. It was your dad's, and he's a cop. And we're talking about fucking bombs and machine guns here."

Alex mumbles something in agreement. We both fall silent, and I lean back, resting my arms on the row behind me. I can still hear the crowd from the front of the school.

"Jesus. The world is just so messed up."

" _Tell_ me about it."

"Do you think things will ever go back to normal?" I decide to take another look at Alex. His bad hand has stopped shaking so bad. 

"Shit, for us? Not a chance."

Yeah, sounds about right.

 


End file.
